Mass. governor planning new Medicaid strategies | NewBostonPost.com
Seeking federal dollars and more cost-controls, Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker's administration is reworking Medicaid on at least two fronts, moving toward population health and installing independent assessors for people in need of a range of services.
Previous battle may offer clues about future in N.J. hospitals' current Horizon feud | NJ.com
It was a very public battle between two New Jersey healthcare companies, the salvos coming on billboards and in dire letters to worried patients. That protracted tug-of-war between a small rural hospital and Horizon Blue Cross and Blue Shield of New Jersey in 2008 may provide some insight into the road ahead for hospitals now fighting Horizon in court.
Florida expands telemedicine controlled-substance prescribing | National Law Review
The Florida Board of Medicine recently met and voted to uphold a rule allowing controlled substances to be prescribed via telemedicine for the treatment of psychiatric disorders. This change has enormous potential to benefit patients in the Sunshine State, promoting access to mental health services and receiving the full scope of psychiatric treatment.
N.C. Blues complaints top 1,400 as software problems continue | (Raleigh, N.C.) News and Observer
Technology issues at Blue Cross and Blue Shield continue piling up as the North Carolina Department of Insurance disclosed last week that the Chapel Hill insurer's website was not listing area behavioral health resources for one of its popular health plans.
Harvard names black woman to head School of Public Health | Boston Herald
Michelle Williams, chairwoman of the epidemiology department at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, has been named as the next dean of the school. Williams will take the post in July, becoming the first African-American to lead a Harvard faculty.
Hospital authority OKs $50 million e-record project | Valdosta (Ga.) Daily Times
South Georgia Medical Center in Valdosta will switch from a McKesson electronic health record system to Epic in a move that is expected to take two years to implement and cost the hospital $50 million over the next five years. The current system is nearly 20 years old, according to the hospital's CEO.
More hospitals offer donor breast milk to help preemie babies | U.S. News & World Report / HealthDay
More hospitals give tiny preemies donated breast milk instead of formula, and the babies appear to benefit from it, a new study suggests. Researchers found the number of California hospitals offering donor breast milk rose substantially between 2007 and 2013—from about 21% of all newborn intensive care units to 41%.
